You won't get enough of this green salad dressing! It's the ultimate creamy dressing for your favorite salads and also makes a great sauce for bowls, wraps, and more! It's loaded with fresh herbs and has a bright and lemony flavor. I like that it's not too pungent and overpowering and still lets other ingredients shine.
Making this homemade salad dressing is a great way to use up all the herbs that are about to go bad in your refrigerator. It's incredibly creamy thanks to the plant-based Greek yogurt and a great all-rounder to have in your fridge at all times – so much better than a store-bought dressing.
Overall I'd say it's similar to the green goddess salad dressing but milder. It has no tarragon, anchovy paste, or parsley.
If you're looking for more creamy dressings for the summer, check out my pink salad dressing and my sun-dried tomato dressing.
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Dressing ingredients
- Plant-based Greek yogurt: I like to use unsweetened soy yogurt with a thick Greek yogurt-like texture. This prevents the dressing from being too liquid. If you're not vegan or dairy-free, feel free to use regular Greek yogurt.
- Olive oil: Helps with preservation.
- Lemon: It adds a vibrant zesty flavor to the dressing that will really bring your salads to the next level. I like to use both the juice and the zest from an organic lemon to make it extra lemony.
- Baby spinach: It gives the dressing a gorgeous bright green color and sneaks in an extra serving of veggies. I like it as a mild alternative to parsley. Use the thin and delicate baby spinach leaves to make sure you don't taste them.
- Loads of fresh herbs: You can really use anything you have. My favorite combination is fresh cilantro, fresh basil, a little mint, and dill.
- Green onions (scallions): The green parts have a bright oniony flavor that gives the dressing a nice kick. The more you add, the more pungent your dressing gets. Don't add the white parts to the dressing and save them for your next stir-fry.
- Garlic powder, salt, and black pepper: For simple seasoning.
If you want a more robust dressing you can add a handful of parsley, some chives, and 1 tablespoon of caper buds to the mix.
Elo's tips
- Add the dressing shortly before serving to avoid soggy salads.
- Drain your salad leaves! If there's a lot of water left on your salad, the dressing will be thinned out and not as creamy anymore. I highly recommend spinning your leafy greens through a salad spinner before dressing them.
- A note on using a food processor: You can easily make this dressing in a small 3-cup food processor. However, the quantities may be too small for a large (10+ cup food processor).
- Freeze leftover spinach for spinach smoothies or use it in a dish such as these lemony spinach white beans.
Step-by-step instructions
STEP 1: Wash the herbs. Remove the thick stems and keep the leaves.
STEP 2: Add everything to a blender. Start with the yogurt, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Then add the spinach, herbs, and spices.
STEP 3: Blend until smooth. Pour in the olive oil and blend again. This prevents over-blending the olive oil, which can provide an unpleasant bitter taste. I like using this Nutribullet blender for dressings and sauces.
STEP 4: Transfer to an airtight container for easy storage. I love these small glass jars, which have the perfect size but a Mason jar would work great, too.
Storage tips
You can store the dressing in an airtight container with a tight-fitting lid in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Preferably store it on one of the refrigerator shelves, where it's cooler, and not in the door.
Give it a good shake before using it to make sure the yogurt, lemon juice, and oil are well combined.
Serving suggestions
- This green dressing really brings a simple green salad with butter lettuce or iceberg lettuce to life. Alternatively, try this avocado-edamame salad without lettuce.
- It makes a great dip for veggie sticks or tortilla chips (by the way, did you know that you can make your own nachos from leftover tortillas?).
- Use it as a green sauce on pita bread with grilled falafel.
- Add it to salads and grain bowls, such as this roasted zucchini salad with spring greens (pictured below), this Puy lentil salad, or this quinoa peach salad with sunflower seeds.
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The recipe
Green Salad Dressing
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup (225 g) Greek-style yogurt plant-based, unsweetened
- ½ cup (40 g) baby spinach
- 1 cup mixed herbs cilantro, basil, mint, dill
- 2 tablespoons sliced green onions green parts only
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- Freshly cracked black pepper
Instructions
- Wash the baby spinach, herbs, and green onions. Remove thicker stems from the herbs and spinach. Slice the green onions.
- Blend. Add the yogurt, olive oil, spinach, herbs, lemon juice and zest, garlic powder, salt, and pepper to a small blender or food processor. Blend until smooth.
- Transfer to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
Nutrition
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